Mousesports acquires Team Tinker

It’s International season, and that means one thing: Mousesports is making its annual foray into esports’ most lucrative tournament.

Team Tinker announced this morning that it had joined the German organization just in time for international qualifiers. The pairing seems a perfect fit, with Tinker’s heretofore rocky campaign and Mousesports’ tempestuous relationship with Dota 2‘s main event.

Team Tinker formed shortly after the conclusion of The International 2014 to much fanfare as former Alliance member Jerry “EGM” Lundkvist and former Cloud9 member Weh Sing “SingSing” Yuen joined Max “Qojqva” Bröcker and Sam “Bulba” Sosale in hopes of finding a new start. The squad found success early but results soon fizzled, leading to the departures of Lundkvist and Yuen.

The team pulled a major coup in March with the signing of prolific talent Dominik “Black” Reitmeier. Unfortunately for Tinker, results remain elusive as the team struggles to find footing in North America.

Still, Mousesports seems the appropriate organization for both Reitmeier and Tinker. The organization fielded squads at The International in 2012, 2013, and 2014, but to little success. The 2012 unit tied for last place in its group with 2013’s campaign ending in similar fashion.

With various faces and squads replaced whole-cloth over three years of unsuccessful stints in the Dota 2 world, Mousesports’ efforts fell painfully short at last year’s International. With the top 10 squads after round-robin competition earning spots in the knockout stages, the organization’s most promising squad to date finished 11th after a series of nail-biting tiebreakers.

For both Tinker as a unit and Mousesports as an organization, the announcement is a show of grit. With qualifiers soon to come, this year’s International is a chance for both to prove that they are contenders, not also-rans, in the world of competitive Dota 2.